Rotten Work
by Lady of the Spirit
Summary: (Oneshot. Archie/Sweet Pea.) As soon as the joke left Marcus' mouth, Archie's mouth went dry even as he tried to force a smile. But then he felt Sweet Pea squeeze his shoulder and Archie felt his insides seize up. Sweet Pea was sitting right next to him. Sweet Pea had heard Marcus' joke. TW: Discussion of past rape (Grundy, not explicit) and what could be considered a panic attack.


TW: This fic contains no explicit or on-screen rape, but past rape is the focus of this story and discussed (without too much detail). This fic also contains what could be considered a panic attack, although since I have no real experience with them I can't be sure, so I put a trigger warning in the tags just in case.

* * *

It was just a joke, and it wasn't even an original one. It was one that Archie had heard thrown his way more times than he could count ever since Jughead's party when _Dilton Doiley_ of all people exposed his secret to their entire grade. Dilton had apologized since then, and so had Cheryl, for mocking him for it, and Chuck, for acting like it was a good thing. For the most part, it had become just like any other piece of once-scandalous gossip in Riverdale - it was known to everyone, but no one cared much anymore. Sure, there were still jokes made about it, but far less than there used to be. Archie was used to it by now. He was okay with it.

Sure, sometimes he flinched, sometimes he couldn't look at anyone in the eye for the rest of the day, but he _was_ okay with it. He was over it by now. It had been more than a year, after all, since that first time, and almost a year since _she_ had left. He (should have been) was over it now.

Marcus Holt from third-period English class making a joke should not have been a big deal, and normally it would not have been.

Except Marcus said it in the student lounge for everyone to hear and Sweet Pea was there to hear it.

As soon as the joke left Marcus' mouth, Archie's mouth went dry even as he tried to force a smile. It was an instinctual act. It was what he always did after things like that happened.

But then he felt Sweet Pea squeeze his shoulder and Archie felt his insides seize up. Sweet Pea was sitting right next to him. Sweet Pea had his arm around his shoulders like he always did when they sat together, now that they were dating. Sweet Pea had heard Marcus' joke.

"What's that mean, Red?" He heard Sweet Pea ask him. Normally, Archie would have smiled at the nickname.

Sweet Pea didn't know.

Archie hadn't told him. Sweet Pea didn't know.

"Arch?" Sweet Pea's voice sounded distant, like Archie was underwater. Even so, he could hear the soft concern in his boyfriend's voice. "Archie, are you okay?"

Sweet Pea was going to know.

Archie had never wanted Sweet Pea to know. Archie never had any intention of telling him. He had liked it, had liked Sweet Pea not knowing, had liked that Sweet Pea was one of the few people in Riverdale who didn't know.

But now Sweet Pea was going to know the truth about Archie and _her_ and all of it and everything Archie had never wanted to happen was happening.

"Shut the _hell_ _up_, _Marcus_," he heard Veronica snap. Only Veronica could make someone's name sound like a curse. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"It's true, isn't it?" Archie couldn't see Marcus - the boy was only a few feet away but Archie's eyes were stuck on the tile floor beneath his feet - but he could hear the sneer in his voice. "What's the big deal?"

"What are you talking about?" Sweet Pea said. Archie could feel his boyfriend's grip on his shoulder tightening, could feel how Sweet Pea was pulling him closer. It was a completely normal gesture. It was something Sweet Pea did all the time, a way to show his affection; it was a way to show his protectiveness. Archie knew that. Archie was used to it. Archie even liked it, how Sweet Pea was looking out for him even in small ways.

But right then, at that moment, Archie was all too aware of how close Sweet Pea was, how tightly he was holding him, how there was no space between them and how he was boxed in by Sweet Pea and the sides of the couch and even the coffee table in front of them. His eyes flicked around the room - Sweet Pea was staring at him, Veronica was glaring at Marcus, Marcus was leering at him, every eye in the room was on them- on _him_, and there was nowhere to go to escape from it all.

Archie leaned forward, pulling himself out of Sweet Pea's embrace.

"Archie." Sweet Pea's voice was full of worry. "What's wrong? What is he talking about?"

"Nothing," Archie said, his voice sounding strained even to himself. He started pulling on his suddenly too-tight shirt collar, thinking that would help.

"Archie, maybe you and Sweet Pea should-"

"Oh, you haven't heard?"

"Don't you _dare_ interrupt me, Marcus, how _dare_ you-"

"Arch, are you okay?"

No, he was not okay, but he couldn't say that because his brain wouldn't connect to his mouth and _let _him say it.

"If you don't get the hell out of this lounge right now and stay away from Archie, you will have a Louboutin heel shoved so far up your ass they'll have to remove it from your large intestine."

"Look, I just don't think it's right that uh,_ Sweet Pea_ here doesn't know about his own boyfriend."

"Why don't you shut the fuck up, Holt?"

"I'm just saying, you deserve to know the truth, and since Andrews isn't saying it-"

No, no, no, if this was going to happen, and it _was_, Archie did not want to be around to hear it. He did not want to be near Sweet Pea when he found out about the terrible, awful things Archie had done. He did not want to watch the change in how his boyfriend looked at him when he found out.

Archie stood up, not hearing Sweet Pea's questions, not noticing Veronica reaching for him, not even stopping to pick his backpack off the floor as he walked out of the student lounge and down the hall. He could feel everyone staring at him, whispering and talking as he walked by, no doubt about him. They all knew about him, they must have talked about it before. They must have talked about how sick and wrong he was, how fucked up it was that he had slept with his teacher, how he must have a thing for older women, older _people,_ and what about Hiram Lodge_\- _

He had to get out. He had to go somewhere else. It didn't matter if he had classes, he couldn't stay in the building for one second longer.

Archie turned to the nearest exit and walked right out of the school.

* * *

He wouldn't have heard it even if he had stayed, but he missed Sweet Pea's roar of _"YOU SON OF A BITCH!"_ and the sound of a fist hitting someone's face.

* * *

Archie didn't stop walking until he was home. He didn't realize he didn't have any of his things with him, except for his phone, until he was home. Because he had left everything at school, including his backpack, which had his keys, which he needed to get inside his home. _You're so stupid. Why are you so stupid?_

It was sheer luck that his dad wasn't working that day and he was able to just knock on the door and wait, shamefaced, on the front step. He heard Vegas race down the front hall, slipping across the floor and bump into the door the way he always did. Archie couldn't help but smile.

Then he heard his dad coming down the hall and the smile slipped off. What could he say? He couldn't tell him what happened, that he had freaked out over someone making a joke and had to leave school early. That would be-

His dad opened the door, saw him standing there, and Archie just fell into his father's arms. His dad wrapped his arms around him without a second thought, rubbing circles on his back like he always did when they hugged. Archie pressed his face into his dad's shoulder, struggling to force back the lump in his throat. He felt his father's hand on the back of his head, gently stroking his hair, and Archie's shoulders slumped. Tears stung his eyes and he clenched the back of his dad's shirt like a lifeline, like if he just held on to his dad and didn't leave his arms then everything would be okay. He had always felt that way when he was little and he felt that way even now, when he was inches taller than his dad and certainly old enough to know life wasn't that simple.

His dad could make anything better, but Archie wasn't sure if he could make _this _better.

Vegas' anxious whining and nudging against Archie's legs finally broke the moment, and the hug ended. When Archie followed his dad inside the house and closed the door, he knelt down next to his dog and started petting him, speaking softly to him. "Hey, Vegas, you miss me?"

Vegas licked his face in reply and it was enough to get Archie to smile again.

"Arch, what are you doing here?" His dad asked, and Archie could hear the concern and the frown in his voice. "Why aren't you at school?"

Archie kept petting Vegas, not looking up. "Just… I wasn't feeling well. So I came home."

"Where's all your stuff?"

Archie winced and didn't answer.

"Archie. What happened?"

_I can't tell him._ His dad still beat himself up over how he had handled the whole issue. If he knew how upset Archie had gotten over a joke - if he knew kids were making jokes - it would only make him feel worse.

But then Archie made the mistake of looking up at his dad. Seeing the concern in his eyes made Archie's stomach twist into knots and he knew he couldn't not tell him what happened. He slowly stood up and leaned back against the wall. Vegas placed his head on Archie's leg.

"Someone… mentioned Ms. Grundy," he said finally. His dad's face fell. "In front of Sweet Pea. Sweet Pea didn't know about her, dad, and now he _does_, and I don't know what to do. I didn't want him to find out, or at least not like that, and I don't know what to tell him or if he'll even want to-"

"Hey, hey, hey." His dad placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. "It's going to be okay, okay?"

"How?" Archie wished he could believe that everything would be alright, but this was Riverdale. Somehow even the best things turned out to be rotten underneath. He didn't want to think the same thing would be true about his relationship, about his boyfriend. "Dad, it's bad enough that the first time we met I put a gun in his face, and that I spent a whole year under Mr. Lodge's thumb, but this, too? What if he just decides it's all too much for him to deal with?"

"He won't," his dad insisted, sounding so confident that Archie almost believed him. _Almost_. "I'd like to say I've gotten to know Sweet Pea pretty well recently, and if I can say anything with certainty, it's that Sweet Pea is as loyal as can be, and he's got a good heart. He's not going to think of you any differently because of what _she _did."

Because of what _she _did.

Archie inhaled.

That was right - it was what _she _had done to him. _She _had used him. It hadn't been his fault.

He knew that, he had struggled for so long to figure that out, he had finally managed to come to terms with it, and he knew it wasn't his fault.

He _knew _that, so why didn't he _believe _it?

"But we don't have to talk about this right now," his dad said softly, rubbing his back. He pulled Archie away from the wall and gently directed him to the stairs. Vegas scrambled to his feet and followed, just like the loyal dog he was. "Just go upstairs, get some sleep, play some music - just rest. I'll call the school and let them know you didn't feel well and had to leave."

"I left my stuff at school," Archie mumbled, looking at the ground. _Stupid_.

"Just text one of your friends to bring it over for you, or I can get the office to have them do it. Don't worry about it, alright?"

Even as Archie lay down on his bed, though, he was worrying - about his stuff and Marcus and Sweet Pea and everything. Even as Vegas lay down on top of him, content as long as Archie kept petting him and scratching his ears, Archie stared at his ceiling and worried.

It wasn't that he thought Sweet Pea would be disgusted by him, by _it_. It was that Archie knew that them being together was random, the last thing anyone would have seen coming after everything that had happened - after everything Archie had done. He knew what he felt for Sweet Pea was real and solid and he couldn't imagine ever not feeling it, and although Sweet Pea rarely said it in words, it was obvious in his actions that he cared about Archie a lot. Sweet Pea was a good person, despite his attempts at hiding it with his angry attitude and Serpent jacket. Archie didn't (fully) believe that Sweet Pea would reject him solely because of _it_.

But there was that sliver of doubt that was at the back of his mind - that because their getting together was so random, so out of the blue, so unpredictable, it would be easily ruined by anything that was _too much_.

(being sexually abused) (having an affair) (being raped) (having a relationship) The _thing _with Ms. Grundy would definitely fall under the category of being _too much_.

His dad only came upstairs twice in the two hours that followed; the first time was to check in on him, the second was to let him know the school would send Veronica over with his backpack and things once school was over. Otherwise, there was no real change in Archie's environment.

He took a short nap that lasted about half an hour. It helped a little, but left him disoriented and tired when he woke up.

He stared at his ceiling a lot, mulling over the events of the day and what could possibly happen next. Nothing really good came to mind.

He played guitar and tried to write out fragments of what could become songs. It helped. He hadn't played a lot of sad songs ever since he had started falling for Sweet Pea, and they had become nonexistent when they had started dating. (His friends had teased him when they had noticed the change in his music, although they hadn't known who he had been changing it for, at the time.) Now, though, every chord he played sounded tragic and sad, every lyric he wrote seemed pathetic and lonely. The metal of the strings stung his fingers.

Archie was in the middle of writing another lyric that followed the same vein of _I'm sorry, don't leave_ \- it wasn't like it was intentional, everything was just coming out that way - when he heard someone knocking on the front door. He froze, breath catching in his throat and his whole body going stiff. Vegas, who had been sitting on his bed and being a terrible audience, dozing off while Archie played, lifted his head off the mattress with interest. He didn't bark, though, which Archie was grateful for.

He heard his dad open the door and greet whoever it was.

He heard Sweet Pea's voice.

Archie held his breath. He couldn't hear what was being said but he could hear his dad and Sweet Pea talking. Then he heard the front door closing and footsteps coming up the stairs. Not Sweet Pea's steps - it was his dad.

Archie still didn't breathe out or relax until his dad gently knocked and opened his door, his backpack in hand and a soft look in his eyes.

"Sweet Pea came and dropped this off for you," he said, placing it on the floor. "I guess Veronica had him bring it over."

"I wonder why?" said Archie, sarcastically. _Veronica_…

His dad shrugged, feigning ignorance even as he smiled. They both knew how Veronica was. "He also asked if you would talk to him," he added, slowly, as if easing Archie into the news. "He said he understood if you didn't want to, but he's really worried about you, Arch. Said you weren't answering any of his texts."

Archie hadn't looked at his phone since before leaving school. He glanced over to where it sat on his dresser. The notification light was blinking.

He looked down at his guitar, plucking at some of the strings and flinching as they bit at his fingers. "I'll talk to him."

It was the last thing he wanted to do, but he knew he needed to do it. Not talking about it would only make things worse.

"Just… let him know I'll be down in a bit." He just needed a minute.

His dad nodded. "Alright. I'll tell him." Offering a reassuring smile, he left, shutting the door behind him.

Archie pinched the bridge of his nose. Okay. Okay, he could do this. He could get through this.

He checked his phone, scanned through the notifications, just to get a sense of what was going on. Veronica had sent him a few texts, asking him where he was, if he was okay, telling him Marcus and Sweet Pea had both got detention for fighting and that the office had asked her to bring his things home but she was sending Sweet Pea over instead. Betty and Jughead had apparently heard what had happened and sent him one basic "are you okay?" text each. The person who had sent him the most texts and had left several voicemails was Sweet Pea. Archie didn't listen to the voicemails but he read the texts.

They were scattered, panicked, asking him where he was over and over again, asking if he was okay in every other text, saying that Marcus ("fucking holt") was an asshole and Sweet Pea had punched him (also noting that Marcus was apparently a terrible fighter), to call him back, that he had gotten detention for fighting, he was_ this close _to just walking out the door and tracking Archie down, consequences be damned, asking why Archie wasn't reading his texts, if he was okay, if he was safe, that Veronica had told him Archie had made it home and to bring him his things, questioning if he had really left his jacket behind ("it's the middle of november red!"). The final text said, "I'm on your front step. Can we talk about this?"

Every message Sweet Pea sent, the number of them, that most were just asking Archie if he was okay, spoke volumes. Archie closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He could do this.

He exhaled.

Archie put his phone down on his bed and walked out of his room. Vegas followed and quickly overtook him, running down the stairs with the excitement of smelling a new person in the house. Archie could only follow, smiling as he heard Sweet Pea greet Vegas and reached the bottom of the stairs to find Sweet Pea sitting with his dad in the living room.

When he saw Archie standing there, Sweet Pea stood up so quickly it was could have been funny, if not for the circumstances and the way Sweet Pea was looking at him, dark eyes filled with concern and another emotion Archie couldn't place. His eyes landed on his letterman jacket, held in Sweet Pea's hands.

"Hey, Red," Sweet Pea said. The soft way Sweet Pea said his nickname and the sight of his jacket gently held in Sweet Pea's hands made some of the tension leave Archie's shoulders.

"Hey, Pea," Archie said. He sounded tired even to his own ears.

"We should talk." Sweet Pea was never one for subtlety. It was something Archie found refreshing. In Riverdale, people put up masks and walls to hide their true feelings. Sweet Pea had no patience for that.

Archie nodded. "Yeah. I know."

"If you're okay with that," Sweet Pea added, hesitantly.

Not really, Archie wanted to say, but he knew he couldn't say that. They needed to talk about it. "No, yeah, I'm - we should talk."

A silence descended upon the room, no one sure what to say next. Finally, Archie's dad cleared his throat and stood up. "Well, while you boys talk things out, I think I should take Vegas for a long walk."

Immediately Archie protested, "No, dad, I can do that, let me." It was a reflex reaction, from years of his dad trying to take care of things for Archie even when Archie could do it himself. He didn't mean to say it now, not when he and Sweet Pea had to have an important conversation (one that could ruin their relationship, the voice in the back of his mind said) and he couldn't actually take Vegas for his walk, but it had slipped out. He shot Sweet Pea a panicked look, hoping he hadn't taken the protest as a sign that Archie was avoiding the conversation.

Surprisingly, Sweet Pea said, "He's right, Mr. Andrews. We can do it." He met Archie's eyes. "It'll give us plenty of time."

"You're sure?"

Sweet Pea nodded. After a moment, Archie turned to his dad and nodded, too.

A few minutes later, Vegas was on his leash and they were walking out the door. It was chilly outside, the cold air bit at his exposed skin. Archie shivered. Sweet Pea handed Archie's letterman jacket to him and held onto Vegas's leash while Archie put it on.

"You really walked all the way home from school with no jacket," Sweet Pea said, shaking his head. "It's the middle of November."

"Wasn't really thinking about that at the time," Archie said with a shrug. After catching the way worry flashed through Sweet Pea's eyes, he regretted saying it. Sweet Pea had been trying to bring back some normalcy and he had ruined it. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize," said Sweet Pea immediately, his voice sharp. "It's not your fault that asshole wouldn't shut up."

They make their way down Elm Street in silence before Archie finally asked, "So, what happened after I left?"

When he looked over at Sweet Pea, Archie could see a muscle in his jaw clenching. "Holt explained what his joke meant," he said through gritted teeth. "So I broke his nose."

Archie had already known that, but hearing from Sweet Pea himself that he had fought someone _for Archie _was… it made him think that maybe this wouldn't be as terrible as he thought it would be. His stomach was still churning as he thought of how he would explain himself, but at the very least, it wouldn't _end _as terribly as he thought it would.

"I kept punching him, he tried to punch me back - _failed_, the little prick has no idea how to fight - and some teachers pulled us apart. I would have gotten a worse punishment - probably suspension - but Veronica told Weatherbee what had happened. She got me only a day or two of detentions instead." There was a tinge of admiration in Sweet Pea's voice that made Archie smile.

"Is that the only reason you stayed?" Archie guessed.

"Yeah. Figured I wouldn't let Lodge's efforts go to waste by ditching. That's a one-time only deal, though. Won't happen again."

"I'll let her know." Archie bit his lip and then asked, "And Marcus?"

Sweet Pea grinned. "He got a whole week of detention. I don't know how Veronica did it."

"She's Veronica," Archie said as an answer. Veronica, he had learned over the past year, could do anything, and anyone who thought differently would pay.

With some of the tension out of the way, they walked a little bit longer in a comfortable silence. Vegas ran in zig-zags, stopping to sniff everything around him at least once, but he was such a good dog that Archie didn't have to keep a tight hold on his leash.

Knowing this, Archie glanced down at Sweet Pea's hand and took it into his own, holding it gently so Sweet Pea could pull away if he wanted. He felt Sweet Pea jolt in surprise but, after a moment, Sweet Pea squeezed his hand tightly and did not let go.

Archie let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. He tightened his grip.

"So, where are we going?" Sweet Pea asked.

Archie shrugged. "The park, if that's okay. Vegas can run around. We can sit down at a bench or something."

Sweet Pea nodded. Archie realized, for the first time, that Sweet Pea had no idea what was going to happen either.

They made it to the park without talking much more. Archie unclipped Vegas's leash, knowing his dog would stay nearby. The two boys sat down on a park bench. There was no more avoiding it.

"What exactly did Marcus say after I left?" Archie asked, turning to look at Sweet Pea, who was watching Vegas with a pissed off expression now that Marcus had been brought up again.

"He said you and a teacher hooked up last year. The same teacher that got killed. That's it."

"And you broke his nose just for that?" Archie couldn't help but feel surprised at how little had actually been said. He had expected Marcus to have said more than just the simplest explanation of what had happened.

"He shouldn't be saying things like that," Sweet Pea snapped. "And he shouldn't be joking about it. It's not funny."

And Archie had the realization that if Sweet Pea hadn't known, then maybe he didn't realize Marcus hadn't been kidding.

"It's true," Archie said. "Marcus was… it's true. He wasn't just joking."

Sweet Pea's gaze flew to him. Archie stared at the Serpent tattoo on Sweet Pea's neck instead of meeting his eyes.

"Yeah," Sweet Pea said. "I figured it was." He paused. "How did Holt know about it?"

"Everyone knows." There was no way to hide it.

"_Everyone_," Sweet Pea repeated. "How does _everyone _know?"

"Betty, Jughead and Veronica found out when it was still happening. Then there was a party that everyone in school came to and during a game of Secrets and Sins, someone else who had seen us together told everyone. Then it just spread." There was no need for Sweet Pea to know who had exposed his secret. Dilton had apologized.

"So it's just common knowledge?" Sweet Pea asked angrily.

Archie didn't know who or what Sweet Pea was angry at, but his throat went dry and he could feel something clawing at the inside of his chest.

"I'm sorry." Archie looked down at his hands. "I should have told you, I-"

"No, _hey_, Archie, _look at me_." Sweet Pea was suddenly taking Archie's hands into his own. Archie hadn't realized his hands had been shaking until Sweet Pea's grip stilled them. He looked up and met Sweet Pea's gaze, dark and intense and angry but something soft still present. "You didn't have to tell me- it was your right to tell me or not. _I'm not mad at you._ I'm mad that it happened, and that I found out about it like this, and that pricks like Marcus Holt think it's okay to joke about it. But I'm not mad at you."

It took a moment before Archie could bring himself to nod. Sweet Pea didn't hide his true feelings, least of all from Archie (excluding the three whole months he had silently pined for Archie without Archie noticing). If Sweet Pea had really been angry with him, he would have said so.

"Okay." Sweet Pea sighed heavily. He didn't let go of Archie's hands.

"I didn't want to tell you," Archie finally - reluctantly - admitted. "I just - I liked that you didn't know, you were one of the few people who didn't know, who didn't look at me and see_ it_ and think-"

"Think _what_?" The anger in Sweet Pea's eyes deepened. "What do people think of you?"

"When it first came out-" Archie had to take a deep breath.

"Arch, you don't have to-"

"No, I _do_." Because now it was out in the open and he didn't want to just leave it alone to fester and rot until it blew up in his face (like everything did) and ruined everything. "I just don't know what to say."

"You could start at the beginning. If you have to tell me."

It wasn't lost on Archie that Sweet Pea kept on giving him choices.

"It was last year," he finally said after another deep breath. "The beginning of summer. I just started working with my dad, and he was working late one day and I was going to walk home. And she pulled up on the side of the road and offered to give me a ride home. And I said yes."

He remembered the way her eyes ran over his entire body from behind her pink sunglasses. At the time it had made him blush and smile; now it just brought the taste of bile to his mouth.

"It started raining really hard and she pulled over so we wouldn't get into an accident or something."

It had made perfect sense; now whenever he remembered it, he wondered if she had been honest or if it had just been part of her plan, if she had a plan.

"We just… started talking. And then she-" he swallowed. "She kissed me. And then it escalated. And then it was over and she drove me home."

Sweet Pea was silent. Archie looked down at their hands, finding it easier than looking into Sweet Pea's eyes.

"And she came back the next day."

Archie watched as Sweet Pea's hands tightened around his own. It wasn't in an assertion of dominance; it was a normal reaction, one of the things Sweet Pea just did without thinking about.

"And it kept happening. I cancelled my plans to take a road trip with Jughead to be with _her_, and that's when Jason vanished. We heard a gunshot - turned out to be meaningless, but we didn't know that, and we agreed to keep it to ourselves because otherwise everyone would find out about us. We carried on like usual. We ended things before school started. And then I went to her for help with my music, and it started all over again. But I wanted to tell the police about the gunshot, to help Cheryl, and she didn't want me to and ended things between us again. So we- so _she _wouldn't be found out."

He had to remind himself that she hadn't been worried about _them _\- she had been worried about _herself_, just like Jughead had said, because she had known what she was doing was wrong. He had to remember that.

"And then Mrs. Cooper found out. Betty didn't tell her, but she found out from reading Betty's diary. And she told my dad. And she wanted to get the police involved."

He still wasn't sure how to feel about Mrs. Cooper anymore.

"She didn't do it for my sake. She did it because she wanted everyone - especially Betty - to know how I was an awful, terrible person who didn't deserve to be friends with Betty. Because I went after her - not Betty, Ms- the other _her _\- and I wanted it to happen."

Sweet Pea made a pained noise.

"That's what I said then. I don't think that now. But I did then. I wanted to protect her. And my dad wanted to protect me, and he and Betty got her to leave town. And it was over."

It wasn't over, because after that had come the party, the jokes, the murder, the realization that what she had done to him was _wrong_, everything that had come from that one realization, and more. But they could talk about that later. Archie was surprised he had made it this far.

Sweet Pea holding his hands had made it a little easier.

Sweet Pea was silent. He was silent for too long.

Archie finally looked up and nearly flinched at the look on Sweet Pea's face. He had seen his boyfriend angry before, had been on the receiving end of his anger prior to the start of their relationship; there was the jaw clenching that Archie was used to, but the cold dark fury burning in his eyes was something Archie had only ever seen once before.

It was the same raw anger Sweet Pea had worn the night Fangs had been shot.

Archie would have pulled away, cursing himself for telling everything, but then Sweet Pea let out a long, unsteady breath and pulled one hand away to shakily push his hair back. He took Archie's hands again and squeezed them as gently as he ever had.

"I -" Sweet Pea took a breath. "I'm so fucking sorry, Arch."

"'s not your fault."

"I know, but I." Sweet Pea paused, taking another breath, obviously trying to control his anger. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry that happened to you. It shouldn't have."

Archie just nodded, his eyes lowering. He hated that there was still a flicker of doubt about how true that was.

"_It shouldn't have happened_," Sweet Pea said firmly. His voice shook. "_God_, if she were still alive, I swear I would-" he stopped. Archie was glad. He didn't want to know what Sweet Pea would have done.

"I'm sorry," Sweet Pea began again, sounding a little bit steadier this time. A little bit. "Sorry I'm not… better at this."

"No," Archie said. "It's… you're fine."

"Okay." Then, to Archie's shock, Sweet Pea brought Archie's hands up to his mouth and kissed his knuckles. Archie could feel heat rising to his cheeks and the tips of his ears. _That _was new.

"Are _you _okay?" Sweet Pea asked, his breath warming the back of Archie's hands. "How are you? It was a year ago, but I know things like this can't be brushed off."

Archie wracked his brain for a proper answer. He wasn't sure. Some days he nearly forgot about it entirely. Other days, touch from another person made his skin crawl. Most days were better, but a lot of days still felt worse, or somewhere in-between where he felt on edge for no reason at all. Today had started out as a better day and quickly veered into being one of the worst.

Finally, he just ended up saying all of that to Sweet Pea, who nodded slowly.

"Okay," he said, something like a spark of determination in his eyes. "Okay. You can tell me when you're having a bad day, or when you're not feeling comfortable." The confusion Archie felt must have shown on his face because Sweet Pea continued, "I can help. If you don't want anyone touching you, I'll make sure no one touches you. If you need something else, I'll do it. Whatever you need. I want to help."

Heat rose to Archie's face again, although for a different reason. "You don't have to take care of me," he said, shaking his head slightly. "I don't want to be a-"

"I _know_," Sweet Pea said, somehow soft and firm at the same time. "But I _want _to."

Sweet Pea squeezed his hands again. Archie felt something inside him crumble.

"_Why_?" He couldn't help the tremble in his voice.

Sweet Pea's eyes dropped to their interlaced fingers.

"Because it's you," he said finally.

They hadn't said 'I love you' to each other, not yet.

This was better.

Without warning, Archie fell forward, his forehead landing Sweet Pea's shoulder. He closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath. He felt Sweet Pea wrap his arms around him, without hesitation, just like he always did; there had been no change between his hug yesterday and his hug today. Nothing had been ruined.

For a long time they just sat there, not a word exchanged between them. Finally, Archie took in another deep breath and pulled away, reaching up and wiping his eyes. He hadn't cried, but there was still a damp feeling that had started earlier and hadn't left. Sweet Pea studied him closely, a look of utter tenderness in his eyes that filled Archie's stomach with butterflies.

"Okay," Archie said quietly. "I think we've been gone long enough to make my dad worry. It's going to get colder soon."

Sweet Pea nodded and whistled for Vegas. The dog came bounding out of the trees in the distance towards them. While Sweet Pea put the leash on Vegas, Archie watched him and smiled.

On the walk back to his house, Archie asked Sweet Pea if he wanted to stay for dinner. Sweet Pea grinned and said "Of course." Archie tucked his hand into Sweet Pea's and squeezed it tightly. Sweet Pea returned the squeeze, and his grin became a soft smile, and finally Archie felt like he could breathe.

* * *

I've been working on this fic for a while, so I would appreciate it if you would leave a comment and let me know what you thought! The title is a reference to the Euripides quote I've seen a lot of lately:

Pylades: I'll take care of you.

Orestes: It's rotten work.

Pylades: Not to me. Not if it's you.


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